Monday brought us the first real winter storm of the season, at least the first one to bring more than a dusting of ice or snow along with cold temperatures.
Up to six inches (15 cm) of snow fell in North Texas Monday evening and night. Regrettably, none accumulated where I live, so I didn’t get any photos. I only saw the winter wonderland as I drove north to work on Tuesday morning. The further I drove, the whiter the world became. What a marvelous transition to see, albeit disappointing in that I had to see it on the way to the office without an opportunity to really enjoy it.
All of that melted by Tuesday afternoon as we warmed up to springlike temperatures.
And now?
A winter storm warning has been issued for all of North Texas. Rain, sleet, and snow already cover the entire area. Up to six (15 cm) are possible before tomorrow morning—depending on location as mileage may vary.
This one seems more intent on being disruptive. Consider this: We’re seeing a good share of thundersnow.
How much we’ll get depends a great deal on how soon it changes to snow and how much more comes through by morning (although we have a chance of flurries throughout the day tomorrow).
My hope is that it’s too bad to drive to work in the morning but not too bad to get out for some pictures. I’m still on call, so I have little time or opportunity to capture images and enjoy the splendor of it all, yet I intend to do my best should we wind up with something better than a light dusting.
Meanwhile, I leave you with this from NOAA:
…WINTER STORM WARNING IN EFFECT UNTIL 6 AM CST FRIDAY…
…SNOW ADVISORY NO LONGER IN EFFECT…AS AN UPPER SYSTEM MOVES ACROSS NORTH TEXAS…HEAVIER SNOW BANDS WILL CONTINUE TO DEVELOP ACROSS WESTERN NORTH TEXAS. SNOW WILL THEN SPREAD EAST INTO THE METROPLEX THIS AFTERNOON AND INTO NORTHEAST TEXAS THIS EVENING. SNOW TOTAL AMOUNTS OF 3 TO 5 INCHES ARE EXPECTED IN AN AREA RUNNING FROM EASTLAND COUNTY EASTWARD ACROSS THE METROPLEX AND ON INTO THE SULPHUR SPRINGS AREA. NEAR THE RED RIVER UP TO SIX INCHES ARE POSSIBLE. SNOW WILL TAPER OFF IN THE EARLY MORNING HOURS IN THE WEST…TO NEAR SUNRISE CENTRAL AND EAST.
A WINTER STORM WARNING MEANS SIGNIFICANT AMOUNTS OF SNOW…SLEET…AND ICE ARE EXPECTED OR OCCURRING. THIS WILL MAKE TRAVEL VERY HAZARDOUS OR IMPOSSIBLE.
What’s entertaining is that six inches of snow elsewhere would be seen as nothing more than a drop of water in the ocean. But in Texas? That’s as close to a cataclysm as you can get without having it be six inches of ice instead (something we’re more apt to get than snow).